Good morning friends
A few days ago, I opened a good morning message which said,”It doesn’t matter where you are coming from. All that matters is where you are going.”
I could immediately connect with this message!
Your past, what you have done in your earlier years, the kind of family you come from, the religion you belong to, your education, …. All these things are not really important if you are going in the right direction.
This message reminds me of the story of Angulimal, who was a dacoit and later became Buddha’s disciple.
It is said that Angulimal would kill the travellers traversing through the jungle where he lived, cut off their little finger and he made a garland out of these fingers. That’s how he was called Angulimal. He had vowed to kill a thousand people. He had already collected 999 fingers when Buddha passed through his forest. Seeing Buddha and Buddha’s innocence and beauty, Angulimal asked him to go back or else he would be forced to kill him. As he talked with Buddha, Buddha requested him to do one thing before Angulimal killed him. Angulimal agreed to the request. Buddha asked him to cut off a branch of the tree. When Angulimal cut off the branch, Buddha asked him to join it back to the tree. Angulimal realised that he could not even join a branch which had been cut, back to the tree, then how could he kill people; and he fell at Buddha’s feet. Buddha accepted him as a disciple and he later attained enlightenment.
If a murderer can attain enlightenment, don’t you think that you and I too, can walk on the righteous path and eventually elevate ourselves spiritually ?
Let us keep our eyes on the path that we wish to walk on regardless of what we have done in our past. If we are going in the right direction, our past will not be able to affect our journey!
So, even though I have made major blunders in the past, I vow to walk on the spiritual path which will lead me to a place which is full of Joy, Peace and Love.
What about you ?
Love,
Anjali Bhatawdekar
